Republican lawmaker from Texas violates financial disclosure law with 5-year delay
A Republican congressman was as much as five years late reporting his spouse’s stock trades, violating a federal financial disclosure law, according to a Raw Story review of congressional financial records.
Rep. Roger Williams (R-TX) failed to properly report 16 stock trades and one bond transaction from two of his wife’s brokerage accounts, some going back as far as February 2019.
Each stock trade was in the $1,001 to $15,000 range involving a variety of companies such as tech conglomerate Alphabet, artificial intelligence company NVIDIA, pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Company and media and entertainment conglomerate Walt Disney and Company.
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Members of Congress are required to publicly report — within 45 days — most purchases, sales and exchanges of stocks, bonds, commodity futures, securities and cryptocurrencies as outlined by the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act, a law passed by Congress in 2012 to defend against conflicts of interest, curb insider trading and enhance public transparency.
Lawmakers only need to disclose the values of their transactions in broad ranges per the financial disclosure law.
Williams’ congressional office did not respond to Raw Story’s request for comment.
This isn’t the first time that Williams has apparently violated that STOCK Act.
Nonpartisan ethics group, the Campaign Legal Center, filed a complaint against William and six other members of Congress for failing to properly disclose their stock transactions in 2021, NPR reported. Williams’ 2021 violations involved three undisclosed 2019 stock trades for wife, Patty Williams, totaling up to $45,000.
“In the situation when we filed the complaint, it seems as though the member knew the rule, and therefore, could not say that he didn't understand the rule, and that's why we thought that there needs to be an investigation to see if this was intentional,” Kedric Payne, vice president, general counsel and senior director of ethics for the Campaign Legal Center, told Raw Story in an phone interview.
“If you fast forward now, to a few years after we filed the complaint, it seems to raise questions again, why would you not comply if you know the rule? It’s either you’re trying to hide something, or you just don't care.”
The House Committee on Ethics previously scolded, but decided not to reprimand Williams over concerns about how his auto dealership would financially benefit from an amendment he introduced in 2015, the Center for Public Integrity reported.
'Common error'
Another Republican member of Congress, Rep. Daniel Webster (R-FL), was more than a year late disclosing the purchase of a U.S. Treasury I bond valued up to $15,000.
Rep. Daniel Webster (R-FL) heads to a House Republican caucus meeting in the basement of the U.S. Capitol October 9, 2015. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
“We understand this is a common error given that U.S. Treasury Bonds are government securities and wholly distinct from private stock purchase,” Adam Pakledinaz, a spokesperson for Webster, told Raw Story via email. “As soon as the requirement was brought to Rep. Webster’s attention, we worked with the Ethics Committee to immediately file the necessary paperwork. He is in full compliance and has been told no further action is required.”
The standard fine for violating the STOCK Act is $200. Often, the fee is waived by the House Committee on Ethics and Senate Select Committee on Ethics. As for consequences for both Williams and Webster, “there’s no reason to think that there'll be anything other than a $200 late penalty at most,” Payne said.
“The rules are clear that Treasury bonds need to be reported, and it’s because voters need to know whether there are any potential conflicts of interest with the information that members of Congress are getting and the trades they’re making,” Payne said. “Treasury bonds are directly tied to … how the health of the U.S. market is seen. So if members of Congress know something about what to anticipate about the health of the US economy that’s impacting those trades, the public needs to know.”
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Williams and Webster join a growing list of legislators — Republicans and Democrats alike — who have violated the STOCK Act.
Raw Story has now identified at least 48 members of the 118th Congress, including Williams and Webster, who have violated the law.
Numerous bills have been introduced over the past two congressional sessions that would at least in part ban stock trading by members of Congress and their spouses or require stricter punishments for violators.
Such bills include the Ban Conflicted Trading Act, the Ban Stock Trading for Government Officials Act, the Bipartisan Restoring Faith in Government Act, the TRUST in Congress Act and the Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments Act.
None of these bills have yet been voted upon by either the U.S. House or Senate.